Server device, method of processing masking of route information and program for the method

ABSTRACT

In a server device, an acquisition unit acquires positional information on a communication terminal. An extraction unit extracts route information including a start point and an end point from the positional information. An identification unit identifies a type of a means of movement of the communication terminal based on the positional information. A masking unit masks a segment of the route information including the start point and a segment including the end point to generate output route information. The masking unit defines a masked segment of the route information in accordance with a type of the means of movement.

The disclosure of Japanese Patent Application No. 2017-198645 filed onOct. 12, 2017 including the specification, drawings and abstract isincorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention

The disclosure relates to a server device that acquires positionalinformation on a communication terminal, a method of processing maskingof route information of a communication terminal, and a program for themethod.

2. Description of the Related Art

Recently, terminals equipped with a Global Positioning System (GPS) andprovided with communication functions such as smartphones and carnavigation systems have been used widely. The positional information onthese terminals acquired from the terminals are not only used in avariety of services such as route guidance for individuals carrying theterminals but also are beginning to be exploited as big data thatrepresent the movement trend or degree of congestion of people orautomobiles. Meanwhile, the positional information on individuals orautomobiles could include personal information or information pertainingto privacy. It is therefore necessary to consider a support for personalinformation protection or privacy protection in dealing with thepositional information.

Patent document 1 discloses a technology of hiding the route informationto prevent individuals related to the collected positional informationfrom being identified, whereby positions distanced from a place ofdeparture and a place of arrival of the route by a predetermineddistance are determined to be a start point and an end point,respectively, and the route between the start point and the end point isoutput as output route information.

[patent document 1] JP-A-2015-103025

While it is possible to prevent individuals related to a movementhistory from being identified by masking the place of departure and theplace of arrival in the movement history, an extensive masking rangelowers the usefulness of the data. It is therefore preferred to definethe masking range safely while at the same time ensuring the usefulness.Of particular note, mobile terminals such as smartphones make itpossible to collect a history of the owner's movement by walking andmovement using automobiles and public transportation. The speed of themeans of movement varies significantly so that it would be difficult toaddress the needs of safety and usefulness at the same time if the dataare masked in the same condition.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The embodiments address this background and a general purpose thereof isto provide a technology to inhibit the usefulness of the data from beinglowered while at the same time securing the difficulty of identifying anindividual from the route information.

A server device according to an embodiment includes: an acquisition unitconfigured to acquire positional information on a communicationterminal; an extraction unit configured to extract route informationincluding a start point and an end point from the positionalinformation; an identification unit configured to identify a type of ameans of movement of the communication terminal based on the positionalinformation; and a masking unit configured to mask a segment of theroute information including the start point and a segment including theend point to generate output route information. The masking unit definesa masked segment of the route information in accordance with a type ofthe means of movement.

According to this embodiment, the usefulness is inhibited from beinglowered while at the same time the difficulty of identifying anindividual is secured, by defining a masked segment in accordance with atype of a means of movement.

The identification unit may identify a temporary stop point between thestart point and the end point where the communication terminal stopstemporarily and identify the type of the means of movement for each ofsegments derived from dividing a route between the start point and theend point by the temporary stop point. This makes it possible toidentify the means of movement of the communication terminal precisely.

The identification unit may identify whether the means of movement ofthe communication terminal is walking or transportation, and the maskingunit may define a masked segment of the route information by defining atraveling time of the communication terminal and configure the travelingtime of the communication terminal masked when the means of movement isidentified to be walking to be longer than the traveling time of thecommunication terminal masked when the means of movement is identifiedto be transportation. In the case the means of movement is walking, themovement is slower than the case of transportation. Therefore, too shorta masked time may make it difficult to secure the anonymity. By definingthe masked time to be longer than the case of transportation, therefore,the anonymity can be secured.

The identification unit may identify whether the means of movement ofthe communication terminal is walking or transportation, and the maskingunit may define a masked segment of the route information by defining atraveling distance of the communication terminal and configure thetraveling distance of the communication terminal masked when the meansof movement is identified to be transportation to be longer than thetraveling distance of the communication terminal masked when the meansof movement is identified to be walking. By causing the masking unit todefine a longer distance in the case the means of movement istransportation, the anonymity is enhanced.

When the means of movement is changed from a first means of movement toa second means of movement in a second masked segment, which is shorterthan a first masked segment masked when the only means of movement isthe first means of movement, the masking unit may convert a differencebetween the first segment and the second segment in accordance with thesecond means of movement to define a third segment and mask a totalityof the second segment and the third segment. In the case the means ofmovement of the communication terminal is changed in the masked segment,a balance is established between the usefulness of the data and theanonymity, by deriving masked segments appropriate for the respectivemeans of movement and masking the totality of the masked segments.

Another embodiment relates to a method of processing masking of routeinformation. The method includes: extracting route information includinga start point and an end point from positional information on acommunication terminal; identifying a type of a means of movement of thecommunication terminal based on the positional information; and maskinga segment of the route information including the start point and asegment including the end point to generate output route information.The segment of the route information masked in the masking is defined inaccordance with a type of the means of movement.

Still another embodiment relates to a program. The program includescomputer-implemented modules including: an extracting module thatextracts route information including a start point and an end point frompositional information on a communication terminal; an identifyingmodule that identifies a type of a means of movement of thecommunication terminal based on the positional information; and amasking module that masks a segment of the route information includingthe start point and a segment including the end point to generate outputroute information. The segment of the route information masked in themasking module is defined in accordance with a type of the means ofmovement.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Embodiments will now be described, by way of example only, withreference to the accompanying drawings which are meant to be exemplary,not limiting, and wherein like elements are numbered alike in severalFigures, in which:

FIG. 1 is a drawing to illustrate a system in which a server device ofthe embodiment collects route information of a client;

FIG. 2 is a drawing to illustrate functions and a configuration of theserver device;

FIG. 3 is a drawing to illustrate a method of identifying the means ofmovement by the identification unit;

FIGS. 4A and 4B are diagrams to illustrate a mode of masking the startpoint and the end point of the route information according to atraveling distance;

FIGS. 5A and 5B are diagrams to illustrate a mode of masking the startpoint and the end point of the route information according to atraveling time;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart to illustrate the process of defining a maskedsegment in the route information;

FIGS. 7A and 7B are drawings to illustrate how masked segments aredefined when the means of movement is changed in a masked segment; and

FIG. 8 is a flowchart to illustrate the process of masking routeinformation when the means of movement is changed in a masked segment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The invention will now be described by reference to the preferredembodiments. This does not intend to limit the scope of the presentinvention, but to exemplify the invention.

FIG. 1 is a drawing to illustrate a system in which a server device ofthe embodiment collects route information of a client. A communicationterminal 22 on a vehicle 10 may be a mobile device of the user on boardthe vehicle. The positional information on the communication terminal 2is periodically acquired by using the GPS. For example, the positionalinformation may be acquired every several seconds.

The positional information and time information on the communicationterminal 22 are transmitted from the communication terminal 22 on thevehicle 10 to a server device 24 in a data center 12 at a predeterminedtransmission period. The time information indicates the time that thepositional information is acquired. The predetermined transmissionperiod may be set appropriately within a range from several seconds toseveral days. In an alternative example, the positional information andtime information on the communication terminal 22 may be transmitted ineach trip of the vehicle. The communication terminal 22 may transmit thepositional information to the server device 24 every time thecommunication terminal 22 acquires the positional information.Alternatively, the communication terminal 22 may transmit a collectionof positional information stored to the server device 24.

The server device 24 located in the data center 12 acquires thepositional information and time information on the communicationterminal 22 from the communication terminal 22 via a network. The serverdevice 24 derives route information indicating a route that the usercarrying the communication terminal 22 travels, based on the positionalinformation and time information on the communication terminal 22. Theroute information includes positional information on a start point andan end point.

The server device 24 collects the route information by acquiring thepositional information from the communication terminals 22 of aplurality of users. The collected information is used as so-called bigdata for traffic analysis, sightseeing trend analysis, etc. For example,the route information on all users living in the same city may beanalyzed to predict the occurrence of traffic congestion.

FIG. 1 shows that the user carrying the communication terminal 22travels from a home 14 to a place of work 16 on a route R1 by using thevehicle 10. Alternatively, the user may move on a route R2 from the home14 to a station 18 nearest the home by walking, move on a route R3 fromthe station 18 nearest the home to a station 20 nearest the place ofwork on a train that is a form of transportation, and move on a route R4from the station 20 nearest the place of work to the place of work 16 bywalking. When the user moves via the routes R2 through R4, the means ofmovement is a combination of walking and transportation.

FIG. 2 is a drawing to illustrate functions and a configuration of theserver device 24. The elements depicted in FIG. 2 as functional blocksfor performing various processes are implemented by hardware such as acircuit block, a memory, or other LSI's, and by software such as aprogram etc., loaded into the memory. Therefore, it will be understoodby those skilled in the art that the functional blocks may beimplemented in a variety of manners by hardware only, software only, ora combination of thereof, and the implementation is not limited to anyparticular form.

The server device 24 includes an acquisition unit 26, an extraction unit28, an identification unit 30, a masking unit, and an output unit 34.The acquisition unit 26 acquires a plurality of pieces of positionalinformation and time information from the communication terminal 22.

The extraction unit 28 extracts the route information on thecommunication terminal 22 including the information on the start pointand the end point, based on the positional information and timeinformation on the communication terminal 22. The extraction unit 28identifies a staying point where the communication terminal 22 stays fora predetermined staying time or longer by referring to the positionalinformation acquired in a time series. The staying point may be an areaof a certain range, and the extraction unit 28 identifies a stayingpoint by detecting that the communication terminal 22 stays for thepredetermined staying time or longer in a certain area. The identifiedstaying point forms the start point or the end point in the routeinformation. In other words, the identified staying point forms a routeend point in relation to a staying point identified earlier in time andforms a route start point in relation to a staying point identifiedlater in time.

When the positional information and time information on thecommunication terminal 22 indicate that the communication terminal 22stays for 20 minutes or longer within a range of a radius of 50 meters,for example, the extraction unit 28 identifies that point as a stayingpoint. Thus, the extraction unit 28 identifies staying points anddetermines staying points adjacent in time as the start point and theend point of the route information, respectively, thereby extracting theroute information on the communication terminal 22.

The identification unit 30 identifies the type of the means of movementof the communication terminal 22 based on the positional information andtime information on the communication terminal 22. In the embodiment,the means of movement is grouped into two types including walking andtransportation. Alternatively, the means of movement may be grouped intothree types including walking, bicycle, and high-speed movable body suchas a vehicle.

The identification unit 30 calculates a moving speed of thecommunication terminal 22 from the positional information and timeinformation on the communication terminal 22 and identifies the type ofmeans of movement of the communication terminal 22 based on the movingspeed of the communication terminal 22. The identification unit 30identifies the means of movement to be transportation when the means ofmovement is advancing at a speed equal to or more than a predeterminedreference speed (e.g., 20 kilometers per hour) and identifies the meansof movement to be walking when the means of movement is advancing at aspeed equal to or less than 20 kilometers per hour.

In order to prevent the means of movement from being misunderstood to bewalking when the means of movement is actually a vehicle and the vehiclestops temporarily at a signal, etc., it is preferred that theidentification unit 30 divides a route between the start point and theend point into segments and identifies the means of movement bydetermining whether the moving speed of the communication terminal 22exceeds the reference speed for each segment. The method of identifyingthe means of movement by the identification unit 30 will be describedwith reference to FIG. 3.

FIG. 3 is a drawing to illustrate a method of identifying the means ofmovement by the identification unit 30. The user carrying thecommunication terminal 22 moves from the home 14 to the station 18nearest the home by walking, waits for a train at the station 18 nearestthe home, rides the train from the station 18 nearest the home to thestation 20 nearest the place of work, and moves from the station 20nearest the work of place to the place of work 16 by walking. Given thismovement of the user, the home 14 is extracted as the start point, andthe place of work 16 is extracted as the end point in the embodiment.

The identification unit 30 identifies a position between the start pointand the end point where the communication terminal 22 temporarily stops.When it is determined that the communication terminal 22 stays for twominutes or longer within a range of several meters by referring to thepositional information, the identification unit 30 determines the pointas a temporary stop point of the communication terminal 22. This makesit possible to identify a situation where the user carrying thecommunication terminal 22 stops temporarily at a signal or a situationwhere the train or the bus that the user is riding temporarily stops ata station or a signal.

As shown in FIG. 3, the user carrying the communication terminal 22starts the home 14 by walking, stops at a temporary stop point P1 and atemporary stop point P2 to wait at a signal, waits for the train at atemporary stop point P3, and stops at a temporary stop point P4 and atemporary stop point P5 that are train stops. The identification unit 30identifies these points where the user stops temporarily as temporarystop points.

The identification unit 30 divides the route between the start point andthe end point by temporary stop points. For example, the identificationunit 30 divides the route into a segment between the home 14 (the startpoint) and the temporary stop point P1, a segment between the temporarystop point P1 and the temporary stop point P2, a segment between thetemporary stop point P2 and the temporary stop point P3, etc. When themoving speed of the communication terminal 22 exceeds 20 kilometers perhour at least once between a segment bounded by the start point, thetemporary stop point, or the end point, the identification unit 30identifies the means of movement in that segment to be transportation.When the speed is always equal to or less than 20 kilometers per hour ina segment where the communication terminal 22 stops temporarily, theidentification unit 30 identifies the means of movement in that segmentto be walking.

Thus, by causing the identification unit 30 to divide the route betweenthe start point and the end point and identify the means of movement foreach segment, the means of movement of the communication terminal 22 canbe identified precisely. The route between the start point and the endpoint may be divided by the distance instead of the temporary stoppoint. For example, the identification unit 30 may divide the routebetween the start point and the end point into segments of 100 meterseach and identify the means of movement for each segment. In otherwords, the identification unit 30 may define movement meansdetermination points in the route between the start point and the endpoint, divide the route into a plurality of segments according to themovement means determination points, and identify the means of movementfor each segment.

Reference is made back to FIG. 2. In addition to the moving speed of thecommunication terminal 22, the identification unit 30 may use mapinformation and the positional information on the communication terminal22 to identify the means of movement. In other words, the identificationunit 30 identifies the means of movement based on the moving speed andpositional information of the communication terminal 22 and on the mapinformation. For example, the identification unit 30 may identify thatthe means of movement is transportation when the communication terminal22 is moving on a rail track or moving on a highway.

The masking unit 32 masks a segment of the route information on thecommunication terminal 22 including the start point (point of departure)and a segment including the end point (point of arrival) to generateoutput route information on the communication terminal 22. In otherwords, the masking unit 32 cuts the segments at the respective ends ofthe route information including the start point and the end point togenerate output route information in which it is made difficult toidentify personal information from the route information. The maskingunit 32 causes a memory (not shown) to store the output routeinformation.

The segments to mask the start point and the end point may be definedbased on the traveling time of the communication terminal 22 or definedbased on the traveling distance of the communication terminal 22. Themasking unit 32 may define a masked segment based only on one of thetraveling time and the traveling distance of the communication terminal22. Alternatively, the traveling time or the traveling distance of thecommunication terminal 22 may be selected according to the situation todefine the masked segment.

The masking unit 32 defines a segment in which the route information ismasked in accordance with the type of the means of movement of thecommunication terminal 22. The longer the masked segment, the moredifficult it is to identify an individual but the lower the usefulnessof the data may be. By defining the masked segment in accordance withthe type of the means of movement, the usefulness is inhibited frombeing lowered while at the same time the difficulty of identifying anindividual is secured.

When the means of movement of the communication terminal 22 isidentified to be transportation, the masking unit 32 defines thedistance of the communication terminal 22 masked to be longer than whenthe means of movement is identified to be walking. For example, when themeans of movement of the communication terminal 22 is walking, themasking unit 32 defines the masked segment to be as long as 500 meters.When the means of movement is transportation, the masking unit 32defines the masked segment to be as long as 1500 meters. When the meansof movement is walking, the user often moves a distance shorter than inthe case of transportation. When the masked distance is too long, theusefulness of the data may be lowered. By defining the masked segment tobe of an appropriate distance shorter than that of transportation, theanonymity is secured while at the same time the usefulness of the datais ensured. When the means of movement is transportation, the travelingdistance is often long. The usefulness of the data is ensured, and theanonymity is enhanced even if the masked distance is configured to belong.

When the means of movement of the communication terminal 22 isidentified to be walking, the masking unit 32 defines the traveling timeof the communication terminal 22 masked to be longer than when the meansof movement is identified to be transportation. For example, when themeans of movement of the communication terminal 22 is walking, themasking unit 32 defines the masked segment to be as long as ten minutes.When the means of movement is transportation, the masking unit 32defines the masked segment to be as long as five minutes. When the meansof movement is transportation, the user moves a longer distance in ashorter period of time than in the case of walking. When the masked timeis too long, therefore, the usefulness of the data may be lowered. Bydefining an appropriate period of time shorter than that of walking, theusefulness of the data is enhanced.

The masking unit 32 may select whether to define the masked segment inaccordance with a traveling distance or in accordance with a travelingtime depending on the situation of movement or means of movement of thecommunication terminal 22. For example, when the moving speed of thecommunication terminal 22 in a masked segment is extremely low orextremely high, the masking unit 32 may define the masked segment inaccordance with a traveling distance. When the communication terminal 22moves at a smooth speed, the masking unit 32 may define the maskedsegment in accordance with a traveling time.

The output unit 34 groups the output route information generated by themasking unit 32 according to the user attribute, area, date and time,etc. and outputs the grouped information. The output route informationis used as big data in applications like traffic analysis, sightseeingtrend analysis, etc.

FIGS. 4A and 4B are diagrams to illustrate a mode of masking the startpoint and the end point of the route information according to atraveling distance. FIG. 4A shows a case where the means of movement inthe masked segment is transportation, and FIG. 4B shows a case where themeans of movement in the masked segment is walking.

FIG. 4A shows that the user carrying the communication terminal 22 movesfrom the home 14 to the place of work in the vehicle 10. The figureshows that the home 14 is the start point of the route information, andthe place of work 16 is the end point of the route information. Sincethe means of movement in the segment including the start point and thesegment including the end point is transportation, the masking unit 32defines a first masked segment I1 including the home 14 and a secondmasked segment I2 including the place of work 16 to be a travelingdistance of 1500 meters. The masking unit 32 deletes the first maskedsegment I1 and the second masked segment I2 from the route informationand outputs the route information between an end M1 of the first maskedsegment I1 and an end M2 of the second masked segment as the outputroute information.

FIG. 4B shows that the user carrying the communication terminal 22 movesfrom the home 14 to the station 18 nearest the home by walking, movesfrom the station 18 nearest the home to the station 20 nearest the placeof work on a train, and moves from the station 20 nearest the station 20to the place of work 16 by walking. Since the means of movement in thesegment including the start point and the segment including the endpoint is walking, the masking unit 32 defines a third masked segment I3including the home 14 and a third masked segment I4 including the placeof work 16 to be a traveling distance of 500 meters. The masking unit 32deletes the third masked segment I3 and the fourth masked segment I4from the route information and outputs the route information between anend M3 of the third masked segment I3 and an end M4 of the fourth maskedsegment as the output route information.

In this way, by defining the masked distance in accordance with themeans of movement of the communication terminal 22, the usefulness ofthe output route information is inhibited from being lowered while atthe same time securing the difficulty of identifying an individual fromthe output route information. Further, when the means of movement istransportation, the anonymity is enhanced by causing the masking unit 32to define a longer distance. When the means of movement is walking, theusefulness of the data is enhanced by causing the masking unit 32 todefine a shorter distance.

FIGS. 5A and 5B are diagrams to illustrate a mode of masking the startpoint and the end point of the route information according to atraveling time. FIG. 5A shows a case where the means of movement in themasked segment is transportation, and FIG. 5B shows a case where themeans of movement in the masked segment is walking.

FIG. 5A shows that the user carrying the communication terminal 22 movesfrom the home 14 to the place of work in the vehicle 10. Since the meansof movement in the segment including the start point and the segmentincluding the end point is transportation, the masking unit 32 defines afifth masked segment I5 including the home 14 and a sixth masked segmentI6 including the place of work 16 to be a traveling time of five minutesand generates route information between an end M5 of the fifth maskedsegment I5 and an end M6 of the sixth masked segment as the output routeinformation.

FIG. 5B shows that the user carrying the communication terminal 22 movesfrom the home 14 to the station 18 nearest the home by walking, movesfrom the station 18 nearest the home to the station 20 nearest the placeof work on a train, and moves from the station 20 nearest the station 20to the place of work 16 by walking. Since the means of movement in thesegment including the start point and the segment including the endpoint is walking, the masking unit 32 defines a seventh masked segmentI7 including the home 14 and an eighth masked segment I8 including theplace of work 16 to be a traveling time of ten minutes and generatesroute information between an end M7 of the seventh masked segment I7 andan end M8 of the eighth segment I8 as the output route information.

When the means of movement is transportation, the user moves a longerdistance in a shorter period of time in the case of walking. When themasked time is too long, therefore, the usefulness of the data may belowered. By defining a shorter period of time than that of walking, theusefulness of the data is enhanced.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart to illustrate the process of defining a maskedsegment in the route information. The acquisition unit 26 acquirespositional information and time information from the communicationterminal 22 (S10). The extraction unit 28 extracts a point where thecommunication terminal 22 stays as the start point or the end point ofthe route information (S12).

The identification unit 30 identifies whether the type of the means ofmovement of the user carrying the communication terminal 22 istransportation or walking. The masking unit 32 determines whether themeans of movement is walking based on a result of identification (S14).When the means of movement is walking (Y in S14), the masking unit 32defines masked segments of a length appropriate for walking as segmentsincluding the start point and the end point of the route information,respectively (S16). Further, when the means of movement istransportation (N in S14), the masking unit 32 defines masked segmentsof a length appropriate for transportation as segments respectivelyincluding the start point and the end point of the route information(S18).

The masking unit 32 generates output route information derived fromdeleting the masked segments from the route information and causes thememory to store the generated output route information (S20). Thus, bydefining masked segments depending on the type of the means of movement,the masking unit 32 can generate output route information in which theusefulness of the data is inhibited from being lowered while at the sametime the difficulty of identifying an individual is secured.

FIGS. 7A and 7B are drawings to illustrate how masked segments aredefined when the means of movement is changed in a masked segment. FIGS.7A and 7B show route information showing that the user of thecommunication terminal 22 moves from the home 14 to the station 18nearest the home by walking and moves from the station 18 nearest thehome on a train.

As shown in FIG. 7B, when the means of movement is changed in a maskedsegment, the masking unit 32 masks the totality of segments defined inaccordance with the type of the means of movement. In the event that themeans of movement is changed in a masked segment, a balance isestablished between the usefulness of the data and the anonymity byderiving masked segments individually in accordance with the means ofmovement and masking the totality of the derived segments.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 7A, the masking unit 32 defines afirst masked segment Iw appropriate for walking based on the means ofmovement from the home 14, the start point. The masking unit 32determines whether the means of movement is changed in the first maskedsegment Iw. In other words, the masking unit 32 determines whether themeans of movement is changed from the first means of movement to thesecond means of movement in the second masked segment, which is shorterthan the first masked segment masked when the only means of movement isthe first means of movement.

Since the means of movement is changed at the station 18 nearest thehome in the first masked segment Iw, the masking unit calculates asecond masked segment iw between the home 14 and the station 18 nearestthe home at a rate appropriate for walking. The masking unit 32 convertsthe difference between the first masked segment Iw and the second maskedsegment iw to adapt to transportation as the means of movement, therebycalculating a third masked segment ir. The masking unit 32 totals thesecond masked segment iw and the third masked segment ir to define amasked segment Iwr. In other words, the masking unit 32 converts thedifference between the first masked segment and the second maskedsegment in accordance with the second means of movement to define thethird masked segment and masks the totality of the second masked segmentand the third masked segment.

This allows segments appropriate for the means of movement to be definedproperly when the means of movement is changed in a masked segment andestablishes a balance between the usefulness of the data and theanonymity.

The masking unit 32 may calculate the third masked segment based on aconversion rate appropriate for the means of movement. For example, themasking unit 32 may calculate the third masked segment it by multiplyingthe difference between the first masked segment Iw and the second maskedsegment iw by a conversion rate appropriate for transportation.

That the means of movement is changed is detected by the identificationunit 30. The identification unit 30 identifies the means of movementbased on the change of the position of the communication terminal in asegment including the start point or the end point and identifieswhether the means of movement is changed in a predetermined range in thesegment including the start point or the end point. The masking unit 32derives the first masked segment appropriate for the means of movementin the segment including the start point or the end point and masks thetotality of segments defined in accordance with the type of the means ofmovement in the event that the means of movement is changed in the firstmasked segment thus derived.

The definition of masked segments toward the start point is describedwith reference to FIGS. 7A and 7B but masked segments toward the endpoint are similarly defined. More specifically, the masking unit 32calculates the first masked segment based on the means of movement inthe segment including the end point. When the means of movement ischanged in the first masked segment, the masking unit 32 calculates thedifference between the first masked segment and the second maskedsegment between the end point and the position where the means ofmovement is changed. The masking unit 32 converts the difference toadapt to the means of movement to define the third masked segment andtotals the second masked segment and the third masked segment to definemasked segments toward the end point.

The masking unit 32 may define a masked segment by defining a travelingtime of the communication terminal 22. The masking unit 32 may configurethe time defined in the masked segment when the means of movement in themasked segment includes walking and transportation to be shorter thanthe time defined in the masked segment when the only means of movementin the masked segment is walking.

The masking unit 32 may define a masked segment by defining a travelingdistance of the communication terminal 22. The masking unit 32 mayconfigure the distance defined in the masked segment when the means ofmovement in the masked segment includes walking and transportation to belonger than the distance defined in the masked segment when the onlymeans of movement in the masked segment is walking.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart to illustrate the process of masking routeinformation when the means of movement is changed in a masked segment.The acquisition unit 26 acquires positional information and timeinformation from the communication terminal 22 (S22). The extractionunit 28 extracts a point where the communication terminal 22 stays asthe start point or the end point of the route information (S24).

The identification unit 30 identifies whether the type of the means ofmovement to arrive at the start point or the end point is transportationor walking and identifies whether the means of movement to arrive at thestart point or the end point is changed (S26). The masking unit 32derives the first masked segment based on the means of movement toarrive at the start point or the end point (S28).

The masking unit 32 determines whether the means of movement is changedin the first masked segment (S30). When the means of movement is notchanged in the first masked segment (N in S30), the masking unit 32maintains the first masked segment to mask the route information. Themasking unit 32 causes the memory to store the generated output routeinformation (S34) and terminates the process.

When the means of movement is changed in the first masked segment (Y inS30), the masking unit 32 adjusts the first masked segment in accordancewith the means of movement changed (S32). More specifically, the maskingunit 32 derives a segment from the start point or the end point to aposition where the means of movement is changed in the first maskedsegment as a second masked segment. The masking unit 32 converts thedifference between the first masked segment and the second maskedsegment in accordance with the means of movement changed so as to definethird masked segment and masks the totality of the second masked segmentand the third masked segment.

The masking unit 32 causes the memory to store the output routeinformation (S34) generated in the masking process and terminates theprocess. By deriving partial masked segments individually in accordancewith the type of the means of movement and totaling the derivedsegments, the masked segments can be defined properly and a balancebetween the usefulness of the data and anonymity can be established.

The embodiment is intended to be illustrative only and it will beunderstood by those skilled in the art that various modifications toconstituting elements could be developed and that such modifications arealso within the scope of the present invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A server device comprising: an acquisition unitconfigured to acquire positional information on a communicationterminal; an extraction unit configured to extract route informationincluding a start point and an end point from the positionalinformation; an identification unit configured to identify a way thecommunication terminal is moved based on the positional information; anda masking unit configured to mask a segment of the route informationincluding the start point and a segment including the end point togenerate output route information, wherein the masking unit defines amasked segment of the route information in accordance with the way thecommunication terminal is moved, wherein the identification unitidentifies a temporary stop point between the start point and the endpoint where the communication terminal stops temporarily and identifiesthe way the communication terminal is moved for each of segments derivedfrom dividing a route between the start point and the end point by thetemporary stop point.
 2. A server device comprising: an acquisition unitconfigured to acquire positional information on a communicationterminal; an extraction unit configured to extract route informationincluding a start point and an end point from the positionalinformation; an identification unit configured to identify a way thecommunication terminal is moved based on the positional information; anda masking unit configured to mask a segment of the route informationincluding the start point and a segment including the end point togenerate output route information, wherein the masking unit defines amasked segment of the route information in accordance with the way thecommunication terminal is moved, wherein the identification unitidentifies whether the way of movement of the communication terminal iswalking or transportation, and the masking unit defines a masked segmentof the route information by defining a traveling time of thecommunication terminal and configures the traveling time of thecommunication terminal masked when the way of movement is identified tobe walking to be longer than the traveling time of the communicationterminal masked when the way of movement is identified to betransportation.
 3. A server device comprising: an acquisition unitconfigured to acquire positional information on a communicationterminal; an extraction unit configured to extract route informationincluding a start point and an end point from the positionalinformation; an identification unit configured to identify a way thecommunication terminal is moved based on the positional information; anda masking unit configured to mask a segment of the route informationincluding the start point and a segment including the end point togenerate output route information, wherein the masking unit defines amasked segment of the route information in accordance with the way thecommunication terminal is moved, wherein the identification unitidentifies whether the way of movement of the communication terminal iswalking or transportation, and the masking unit defines a masked segmentof the route information by defining a traveling distance of thecommunication terminal and configures the traveling distance of thecommunication terminal masked when the way of movement is identified tobe transportation to be longer than the traveling distance of thecommunication terminal masked when the way of movement is identified tobe walking.
 4. A server device comprising: an acquisition unitconfigured to acquire positional information on a communicationterminal; an extraction unit configured to extract route informationincluding a start point and an end point from the positionalinformation; an identification unit configured to identify a way thecommunication terminal is moved based on the positional information; anda masking unit configured to mask a segment of the route informationincluding the start point and a segment including the end point togenerate output route information, wherein the masking unit defines amasked segment of the route information in accordance with the way thecommunication terminal is moved, wherein when the way of movement ischanged from a first way of movement to a second way of movement in asecond masked segment, which is shorter than a first masked segmentmasked when the only way of movement is the first way of movement, themasking unit converts a difference between the first segment and thesecond segment in accordance with the second way of movement to define athird segment and masks a totality of the second segment and the thirdsegment.